Battles, School, and Sandwiches
by SeoulSearcher
Summary: Ash Ketchum is an apathetic, yet exceptionally talented sophomore at the National Kanto Pokemon Academy. Between getting run into in the hallway, and his best friend Gary setting him up on a double date, who knows what'll happen?
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys! I'm SeoulSearcher and this is my first Fanfiction attempt. I've read so many so I finally decided to try and write my own. Please review it, critique is always welcome! Have fun!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Pokemon, the characters, etc.

* * *

Chapter One:

The Kanto National Pokemon Academy. One of the top four universities in the world, and current number one in Pokemon battling between the four. The National Intramural Battle Tournament takes place at the end of every school year, where the top 8 students from each school compete in an elitist tournament to decide school pride. Naturally, the goal for all students is to get a good education to perhaps join the professional battling circuit, the professional coordinator circuit become a professional breeder, etc., as well as to join the End-of-Year Tournament. The Kanto Academy prides itself on hard work and dedication.

* * *

8:37 AM, Sunshine illuminated the face of a dark-haired adolescent, sleeping peacefully next to what seemed to be a breathing yellow pillow. These Pokemon and ketchup-filled dreams were not to last, as the young man's phone vibrated on his dresser, promptly asking him to investigate what had ruined his fantasy. There were three simple words on the phone.

"Where are you?"

The boy's mind instantly responded, "In my room, duh." The time was 8:37, on a Tuesday morning. He had school on weekdays, didn't he? First hour starts at...8:30. The teen jumped out of bed, knocking off the resting pile of yellowness, which turned out to be a very aggravated electrical rodent, who in anger, delivered an unnecessary yet satisfactory dosage of voltage to its trainer. The singed boy quickly apologized as he ran through his room, quickly dressing into his uniform blazer and pants, and threw on his signature hat. He strapped his belt of pokeballs around his waist and beckoned his irritated companion out the door. Together, they left the dorm and ran towards the lecture hall.

This boy's name is Ash Ketchum.

And he had overslept again.

* * *

Now in AP Battle, where everyone's distracted focusing on their opponent, or PokeMed, where everyone's falling asleep, it's very easy to slip in unnoticed by the class and the teacher. Which is why when Ash entered the lecture hall twelve minutes late, he had the full attention of the class.

"Well good morning Mr. Ketchum."

"Good morning Professor Elm."

"Though I'm quite pleased you beat your arrival time yesterday, twelve minutes late is still pretty damn late. One more this month and it'll be a detention."

The class snickered.

"All right, sorry Professor"

Ash lazily walked towards the top right corner of the hall, his favorite napping spot in the room. Around him, he could hear the whispers.

"Man, he's so arrogant."

"What a prick."

"Just cause he can battle..."

Then a snarky voice rang out amidst the murmurs:

"And I even sent you a text to help get you here on time."

Ash looked towards the voice. There was his best friend, and the only guy who could give him a good run for his money in this school, Gary Oak. His spiky brown hair and jockish attitude had attracted girls since they were kids. Which was good because Ash, though good-looking, had a complacent lazy attitude and never chased after girls. They concluded that he was just dense.

"Thanks Gary, the text came at 8:37."

"Better 8:37 than past 9 right?"

"Fair enough." Dejectedly, Ash slumped in his chair as Professor Elm proceeded to describe the proper care of growing Pecha berries.

"You know what I did last night?" Ash really didn't feel like hearing Gary's latest escapade.

"Who, I know what, you told me when, where, I hope not in our room, why?"

"Misty Waterflower, she's a senior!"

"Where and why, Gary?"

"She's beautiful and she's got a great personality-"

"Where did you do it Gary?"

"And she-"

"Gary."

"...Our room when you were out training."

"Well goddamn. Thank God my opponent yesterday wanted a 6v6 instead of a 3v3."

"Amen to that. But you know? I actually think I might stick around with her for a bit"

Ash's eyes widened and he flinched, dropping his textbook on his foot.

"Ash, as long as you're making noise, could you please tell me the effect of the Salac Berry?" inquired Professor Elm.

"Err...that would be a speed boost, right?"

Professor Elm was surprised he was still awake.

""_Miracles DO exist," _thought Professor Elm.

"_Miracles DO exist,"_ thought Ash.

"That's good, just surprising to see you finally getting serious," he said to Gary.

"Yeah, I'm surprised too. Anyway, she wants to meet later today."

"Good for you."

"Around 5:30."

"Nice time for dates."

"We're meeting in the courtyard and we'll just hang around downtown."

"Sounds like fun."

"Yeah it's gonna be a blast."

"I bet."

"Lots and lots of fun."

"Yeah..."

"Say, Ash, are you free around 5:30?"

"...Did you agree to another double date without my consent?"

"Nahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhyes."

"Damnit Gary, I was supposed to perfect Pikachu's latest attack combination today."

"You'll have all the time in the world to battle later, and Misty said this girl was cute."

"What's in it for me?"

"I'll pay for your second helpings at the cafeteria until Friday."

"Done deal," but quickly backtracking, Ash asked, "How old is she?"

"She's our age." The dark-haired teen sighed in relief.

"All right, just making sure she wasn't in eighth grade like last time..."

"Come on, man! She had to bring her little sister and I paid up for that debt already!"

"Ahh, Gary Oak suspended for running in the nude at 7:00AM."

"Don't worry, she's just transferred into our year, Misty's showing her around, so she's definitely a sophomore."

The bell rang.

"Well I'll see you in AP Battle later, don't forget, 5:30!"

"Yeah, yeah, see you Gary."

* * *

People always talk about how nice it would be to be talented. The attention, the busy life, all the friends. But as Ash walked down the hallway alone, he certainly didn't feel talented. It was, sort of lonely. People get jealous, people feel threatened, and then people don't understand.

To escape this loneliness, Ash often turned to food. It was an amazement he wasn't overweight considering how much he could put down in a single sitting. He pulled out a sandwich and was just about to unzip the plastic bag when something as fast and blue as Sonic the Hedgehog zoomed towards him and BAM! The sound of books, papers, and Ash's sandwich hitting the floor echoed throughout the hallway. Turning around, he looked at the offender.

If blue hair could ever look natural on someone, it would be on this girl. Blue eyes accompanied an angry expression, as the girl wearing a sophomore uniform stood up.

"What the hell?! Watch where you're going!" Girls could talk like this?

Now Ash might be apathetic in everything besides Pokemon battles, but if someone CLEARLY ran into HIM, he expected at least a small apology.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, YOU were the one running in the hallway, there's still two minutes to get to class!"

"I have chemistry on the fourth floor, that's a pretty long walk!"

Ash looked confused and look to his right.

"Chemistry's in this room here," he gestured.

The girl's face turned somewhat apologetic.

"Oh well, I'm kinda new here so I don't really know where I'm going."

Ash lightened up too.

"It's fine, just slow down and don't go crashing into anyone else." He grinned and readjusted his cap.

"All right." She gave him a smile and they picked up their scattered belongings.

"I guess I'll see you around," the girl said.

"See ya."

* * *

Ash sat in his math class, pondering what would go best with his tomato-chicken-lettuce-bacon sandwich. Realizing he already had everything that would possibly work together on the sandwich, he ate it without thinking further.

Now the last time Ash checked, the artistic combination of the aforementioned ingredients did NOT taste like mayonnaise.

"_Wait, mayonnaise?_" he thought.

He was allergic to mayonnaise.

* * *

Well this was turning out to be an A-class day all right. Gary had set him up AGAIN, he was late to school, and got sent to the Nurse's Office after spitting out as much mayonnaise sandwich as he could onto his desk. He broke out in serious hives. They were just starting to calm down when someone pulled back his bedside curtain.

"Hahahahahahhahahahahaha, you look terrible!" laughed the lettuce-head.

"Drew, don't be such an asshole. Ash! Are you all right?"

"Hey May, I'm all right."

"What happened?"

"I ate some mayonnaise."

"You what?!"

May Maple was a junior at Kanto Academy. Long brown hair, calm blue eyes, and a nice smile seemed to draw people to her. Ash met her at last year's National Intramural Tournament, and they hit it off right away. Recently, she started dating Drew, a senior and fellow coordinator. He used to be arrogant, but spending time with May had tranquilized his former personality.

"Ash, why the hell would you eat mayonnaise?"

"Well short-story long..."

"...So then our sandwiches got mixed up and I got her mayonnaise sandwich. I mean, who the hell eats a sandwich with just mayonnaise?"

"That's just unlucky," Drew remarked.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be in class?"

"Well," May started, "I walked by the math hallway and all the everyone talking about some kid who threw up on his desk and broke out in boils. I was about to steer clear in case it was contagious, but someone mentioned how the boy was followed out by a Pikachu. Then I got worried and skipped class!"

Ash laughed. May liked to find good excuses to leave lessons.

"I appreciate the concern, I'll be fine after lunch."

"Want us to get you anything?"

"A lunch that includes no mayonnaise whatsoever would be great."

"I'll see you at lunch then!"

"Wait, May, weren't we having lunch-" Drew interjected.

"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease?" She turned on the charm.

"Argh, all right, but you owe me!"

"Well I can't skip a whole hour without my teacher getting mad, we're gonna go, rest up Ash!" May got up and hugged the sick boy.

"Thanks guys."

* * *

Ash smiled as they left. At least there were a few people here who could make him feel wanted. And one Pokemon. Speaking of which...

"Hey buddy you can come out now."

Pikachu came out from under the bed.

"Why did you hide from May? I thought you liked her."

"Pika, Pika-chu."

"Drew? What about Drew?"

"Pikaaaaaaaa" the rodent gestured with his paws.

"Haha, of course, his hair is pretty scary."

"Pikachu, Pika, Pika?"

"I'll be fine in a few hours. I just have to let my symptoms die down. On the plus side, I'm skipping math, breeding, and physics."  
"Chu."

"Don't worry we're still battling later. You and these guys (Ash gestured towards his belt) could probably take the other kids by yourselves."

"Kachuu."

"Yeah we'll fix your new combo later, but for now, a well-deserved nap."

The Pokemon jumped onto the bed and swaddled itself in blankets, and the two clocked out.

* * *

"Hey. Heyyyy. HEY!"

Ash jerked awake and surveyed the room. May, Pikachu, and Gary were eating next to his bed. May handed him a plastic food container.

"Lucky bastard, she cooked for you," Gary grunted in mock jealousy.

Ash chuckled and turned to May, "Thanks, May, you're the best."

"This is only cause you're bedridden! Otherwise, I'd expect payment," May stated.

"So you would cook for me if I got sick?" Gary asked hopefully.

"Nahh, you'd have to pay anyway."

They laughed and spent the rest of the hour eating, talking about recent battles, and discussing the possible origins of Drew's ever-so-green hair.

* * *

-45 minutes later-

The bell rang.

"Yes! Ash, ready for AP Battle?" Gary asked excitedly.

"I'm not, but my Pokemon are raring to go."

"I'll see you guys later, AP Coordinating is on the other side of the school." May hugged Ash and waved to Gary.

"Bye May!" they called out.

Ash got out of bed and put on his hat.

"Pikachu, time to go!"

"Pika!"

* * *

Kanto Academy's Battle Complex contained 64 separate fields, each containing multiple, switchable terrains and its own set of bleachers. The ceilings could open or close and overhead lights and referees were always around, making battling access available 24/7. It was here where AP Battle was held.

* * *

"All right guys, let's get going!" shouted Volkner, "We have to get through all 10 matches today so let's get started right away. Umm...3 Pokemon each, no substitutes. You can leave once your match is finished."

"Man I'm so amped up," said Gary.

"Gary, take Brandon."

"Ashley and Winona.'

"Ash...hmm..." Volkner looked around the room, "How about you take on Kyle today."

Kyle groaned loudly. Ash shrugged.

* * *

"Well I've got nothing to lose now! Let's have a good one," Kevin said.

"That's a good attitude, let's go!"

The battlefield quaked and a half-ocean, half-earth field came out.

"Hmm...Well let's go with Gyarados!" Kyle threw a PokeBall and out came a large Gyarados. Its size and vicious-looking face was intimidating to most opponents but Ash looked it in the eye.

"Pika Pika!"

"Sorry Pikachu, you battled last time, I have to give someone else a chance."

"Pikaaaaaaa" it whined.

"I know bud, tell you what, you can go second if one of these guys gets knocked out."

"kaaaaa."

"Yeah, yeah. Okay, Squirtle, wreck'em." Ash threw his own PokeBall and Squirtle came out posing like a swimsuit model.

"Can you try not to embarrass me before the battle even starts...?" Kyle laughed out loud.

"You can have the first move, Kyle."

"All right, Gyarados, Dragonbreath!" A stream of green fire erupted from Gyarados' gaping jaws and rocketed towards Squirtle.

"Squirtle. Go home." Squirtle immediately sidestepped the oncoming jet of breath and dove into the water.

"Now spiral and Ice Punch!"

"Gyarados, Thrash!"

Gyarados flailed savagely in the water. Squirtle sweatdropped because he wasn't even in range of the Thrash attack. Calmly, the turtle weaved through the fins and scales of the pseudo-dragon and Ice Punched him in the jaw.

Now, normally, a punch from a Pokemon of this size wouldn't do so much, but the Gyarados flew out of the water and landed on the ground, hard. Kyle's jaw dropped.

"Squirtle, Seismic Toss."

Squirtle picked up Gyarados, jumped in the air, did a backflip just in case there were girls watching, and threw Gyarados into the ground, leaving a nice crater for whoever was battling next.

"That's a crazy Squirtle you got there."

"Thanks, I think he's crazy too."

"Squirtle Squirt!" Squirtle shouted in indignation.

"Well I'm not going to give up yet, let's go Staraptor!" A large brown bird came out of the Pokeball, and swooped down towards Squirtle with an Aerial Ace attack.

"Squirtle, let's be serious now."

"Squirtle."

Squirtle sidestepped the Aerial Ace and shot an extremely high pressured Hydro Pump that knocked Staraptor out of the sky. It lay on the ground, fainted. Spectators were starting to gather round.

"That's insane..."

"It's only a Squirtle too."

"He must be cheating..."

"Okay, I can't go down like this, Hitmonlee, let's show them!" A humanoid pokemon with disc-like legs and arms came out, and assumed a martial arts stance.

"Close Combat Hitmonlee!" Hitmonlee rushed Squirtle with a flurry of blinding kicks and punches.

Ash looked towards the crowd, then back to the field.

"Squirtle, give them a show, no attacks."

Squirtle proceeded to fight Hitmonlee in hand-to hand combat. The crowd was taken aback by the versatility of the small turtle. Now it might've gone on for longer if Squirtle didn't stick out his tail in the middle of the battle. Hitmonlee tripped and Squirtle jumped on top of it and beat it into submission.

"Hitmonlee! Are you all right?" Squirtle had only hit Hitmonlee to the point where it couldn't fight back, so it was still conscious.

"Hitmon."

"Well thanks for the battle Ash, I'm going to get stronger so watch out for me!"

"Thanks to you too, Squirtle had fun, didn't cha Squirtle?

"Squirtle Squirt!"

The crowd dissipated and Ash turned and walked back towards the dormitories, hoping to catch a few hours of sleep before he had to accompany Gary on his female excursion.

* * *

"Ash, come on!" Gary shook the sleeping boy, before giving up, and just pushing him off the bed. THUMP.

"Goddamnit Gary, let a man sleep."

"Well our date's in 30 minutes, I thought you might want to freshen up a little."

"What's not fresh about me?" Gary examined the bedhead, sweatpants, and drool hanging off the side of Ash's mouth.

"Yeah...just don't go looking like that."

"How did your battle go?"

"I beat him, Umbreon and Blastoise did really well. You?"

"I'm still managing to get by with one Pokemon. Squirtle's really been improving."

"Showoff. You and Squirtle."

"You're just jealous."

"Maybe, but really, wash that spit off your face and brush your teeth or something."

"Yeah, yeah.

* * *

Ash ended up wearing his sweatpants, flip flops and a fitted T-shirt, exposing his toned physique. Gary wore a casual button-down with khakis and sandals. They chatted outside Gary's car when Gary called out to two approaching figures.

"Misty, over here!" The redhead ran over and kissed Gary full on the lips. Ash rolled his eyes. Gary broke this kiss and gestured to Ash.

"Misty, this is my friend Ash, Ash, Misty." They shook hands.

"You must be one helluva girl to keep Gary on a-" Gary slapped Ash hard on the back and laughed.

"What are you talking about, Ash?" Ash laughed sarcastically.

"Obviously nothing Gary." The other girl Misty was with just caught up with her.

"Oh guys," Misty started, "This is the new girl, she's your age. Dawn Berlitz."

Ash looked at her. "_No way," _ he thought.

Cute, blue hair, electric blue eyes. Both pointed at each other in surprise and anger and in unison screamed:

"MY SANDWICH!"


	2. Chapter 2

Hey everyone! It's SeoulSearcher. Don't worry, neither me or this story is dead. I'm sorry if it seemed like I wasn't going to continue the story, lots of tests and life events got in the way, but I'm back again, and my updates will hopefully be more regular. Thanks for all the reviews so far! It's really nice to know what people think about what I'm writing, so please keep reviewing. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

It was a peaceful afternoon at the National Kanto Pokemon Academy. Was. Past-tense. The tranquility of flirting teenagers and calming spring breezes was rudely interrupted by two shrill screaming voices.

* * *

"MY SANDWICH!"

"Sandwich? Oh no way..." started Gary.

"Sandwich, what the...Dawn?" mumbled Misty.

"Yeah my mayonnaise sandwich! That I was looking forward to ALL day! Then I got your piece of crap FAKE BLT! Everyone knows any sandwich with Bacon, lettuce, and tomato, has to have mayonnaise in it too!" Dawn screamed.

"FAKE BLT? Better a FAKE BLT than a FAKE SANDWICH! All you had on that bread was mayonnaise!" Ash retorted.

"A mayonnaise sandwich is good for everyone, it doesn't need other ingredients!"

"Mayonnaise sandwich? With how much you put in, it was more like sandwiched mayonnaise! And it's obviously NOT good for everyone, I'm frickin' ALLERGIC to mayonnaise! I broke out in hives spent my lunch hour in the Nurse's Office! Not just that but I threw up over my desk and the entire sophomore class was talking about it"

"Wow, what a coincidence! I threw up too! Except I had the stomach strength to make it to the bathroom before throwing up! At least from what I tasted, it was butter-free or else the calories would've..."

They looked up.

A Butterfree flew by next to it's trainer.

…

"BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Dawn and Ash broke out in laughter. Gary and Misty sweatdropped.

"Really guys?"

"That was maybe the lamest-"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHahahahahaha, phew!" They slowly caught their breath. Ash stretched out his hand to this interesting girl.

"I'm Ash Ketchum, sophomore." The girl looked at the hand and did likewise.

"Dawn Berlitz, sophomore. Pleased to meet you sandwich-thief."

"All right kids, let's get going," Gary said tiredly.

"Gary, we're the same age," said Ash. Gary look at him deadpanned.

"'Ash, you guys just laughed at 'butter-free'."

"Hey now, that joke is for all-ages 4 and up!" Dawn and Misty laughed.

"Everyone in the car, we're going downtown!"

* * *

Inside the car:

There was an awkward silence as everyone sat down in the car. Leave it to Ash to draw out the Donphan in the room.

"Gary, it smells."

"..."

"Gary why does it smell like that?" Misty asked hesitantly.

"It smells like...chicken, of the fried variety," Dawn suggested.

"All right! I know we're not allowed part-time jobs while we're in school but I've been delivering for Kansas Fried Chicken after school. Don't tell my dad!"

"Yeah, yeah, just get an air freshener and roll down the windows," said Dawn.

"Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz." Dawn felt her phone vibrating and checked the caller ID. She gave an exasperated sigh and picked up.

"What do you want now? No, I'm fine, I'm just going out with some friends. No, you don't need to check up on me all the time. Goodbye." She closed the phone.

"Sorry about that." She said to the group. Gary noticed the change in mood and decided to help Dawn out by starting the car and blasting the radio.

* * *

As they were going down the highway, Dawn continually looked out the window, obviously off-put by the phone call. Ash noticed and pulled out his phone and started typing.

"You all right?" He passed the phone to Dawn. She turned and read the message, then typed back.

"Yeah, happens all the time."

"Family problems?"

"...how did you know?"

"Same thing used to happen with my dad."

"Used to?"

"He's gone. Just me and my mom now."

"I'm sorry."

"I came to terms with that a while ago. Just let me know if you ever want to talk." She turned to him and smiled.

"I will, thanks." Before handing it back, Dawn entered herself into Ash's contacts.

"You named yourself 'Youowemeasandwich'? I'm surprised that even fit." Ash asked out loud.

"Well I don't want you to forget, cause you do owe me."

"Well in that case," Ash grabbed Dawn's phone.

"Hey, give it back, jerk!" She snatched it.

"Ash-is-the-best. Really? Aren't we original?"

"Well, I wanna be the very best," Ash said wistfully, "Like no one ever was. To catch them-"

"Ash, what are you talking about?" Gary turned around to Ash.

"Gary! Focus on the road!" Misty yelled. Gary's necked snapped back and the car swerved, narrowly avoiding a ditch.

"Phew!" Everyone was about to start yelling at Gary when-

"I can see the city!" Dawn shouted.

* * *

Massive shopping malls and attractive banners and billboards filled up the space downtown. There was an endless myriad of things to do, places to go, and people to meet making it a common place to relax and hang out for all ages.

* * *

"Good thing you bought that parking permit, Gary. We would've had to park outside the town" Dawn remarked.

"Well some exercise might do you some good" Ash murmured. Dawn spun around.

"Did you say something, Ash?" She smiled, and while it was still beautiful, there was an underlying message of, "Youdidntjustsaythatimnotfatidareyoutosayitagainso icanpunchyouintheface." Ash sweatdropped.

"Uhh, I just said some exercise might do Gary some good."

"Hey!"

"Haha, I agree, look at these baby cheeks!" Misty grabbed Gary's cheeks. Dawn and Ash cracked up and Gary straggled along, feeling emasculated.

"So what do you guys want to do?" Misty asked.

"Some shopping might be nice," said Dawn.

"Hmph." Gary grumbled in mock anger.

"I'm fine with that!" Misty said enthusiastically

"Whatever." yawned Ash. They took a left and headed to the mall.

* * *

"I think this one looks nice, what do you guys think?" Misty asked, holding up a bikini.

"It's really cute!" said Dawn.

"Looks great," said Gary.

"Zzz..." Gary walked over and shook his best friend back to consciousness.

"Mmm? Oh, hey guys." Gary took him over to the side.

"Come on, Ash, that's the third time you've fallen asleep in here. They're going to think you're boring."

"I'm trying! You know how much I've been lacking on sleep. And there's so many nice things to fall asleep on."

"You fell asleep on a shelf of women's swimsuits."

"My favorite so far is a combination of nylon and lycra." Gary sighed.

"Can you just try a little harder, I really want to have Misty leave this thing with a smile." Ash became suddenly animated and pulled open Gary's eyelids.

"Ow! What the hell?"

"Just making sure you were Gary. You're really serious aren't you?"

"Yeah. So can you just promise me you'll help me out today, whatever happens?"

"Sure."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Gary extended his pinky.

"Really?" Gary looked on solemnly. Ash relented and they locked pinkies.

"You're my bro, let's keep this date going."

* * *

The mall's endless distractions kept them well occupied and the four continued through the jungle of merchandise. Ash turned to Dawn.

"You're not buying anything?"

"Maybe later, I'm not really into buying things, just looking."

"Window shopper? Me too. Except when it comes to Pokemon." Dawn pointed to a Pokemon trainer store.

"Wanna go in here then?"

"Yeah, sure, Gary and Misty, you wanna come-" Ash turned around to see no one.

"Maybe they got lost," Dawn said worriedly. Ash was about to start looking when his phone buzzed. A text from Gary.

"Me and Misty are going to sneak off and watch a movie! Have fun with Dawn!"

"That asshole!" He was about to call Gary and complain when he remembered the pinky promise.

"_Curse the power of the pinky promise..." _he thought. He put his phone away and turned to Dawn.

"Well I guess we've been ditched," he said.

"I guess I was kind of expecting it, Misty's been complaining about how she never has alone time with him in school," Dawn said.

"So is there anything you want to do? Dawn?" Dawn had started nodding off. Ash put his mouth right next to her ear and said in a very breathy voice, "Dawn." She jerked awake then pulled away at the close proximity. Ash laughed.

"Sorry, before today I haven't gotten much sleep, with all the time-zone changing and such. Misty wanted me to come along and make friends before I started school, but I'm just too tired," Dawn let out.

"I forgot you just transferred, where are you from?"

"Twinleaf Town in Sinnoh."

"Well, Dawn of Twinleaf, let me show you the best place in the mall." Dawn looked at him quizzically and followed him up to the eleventh floor.

* * *

"Furniture," Dawn said in monotone,"You made me walk up all those stairs to look at furniture."

"You'll see, you'll see."

Ash led her through the menagerie of wooden dressers, glass tables, metal chairs and eventually they got to a corner of the store, where the glass walls overlooked the city. It also happened to be where the beds were located. Dawn looked confused until Ash jumped onto one of the beds.

"Whenever people would drag me downtown, most of the time, I was just too tired, like you. Then one day, I found this place. This store is famous for its table-chair sets so the employees almost never come back here. It helps to have those tall dressers kind of blocking the view." Dawn looked hesitant.

"I dunno about this."

"You're sleepy, I'm sleepy. And it's not like we have to try and impress each other if we both know that the other is tired." Dawn smiled at the boy's simplicity and lay down on the bed adjacent to Ashs'.

"Well thanks for this, Ash Ketchum, I guess I'll see you in a few hours."

"Seeya Dawn."

* * *

The two drifted off to sleep above the busy city. Their relaxed breathing synchronized with the quiet jazz playing over the furniture store. And even though they were with someone they had just met, for the first time in a while, Ash and Dawn were finally able to get some sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

It's been a while. Thanks for all the reviews, keep reviewing!

* * *

12:34 AM

Aesthetic, unconvoluted skies. Clouds of pink and purple that swirled together in an infinite pile of natural beauty. Ash had been having this dream often, ever since that night. Holding her hand, walking down the side of the beach. He whispered sweet nothings into her ear that left soft impressions of his feelings. She came closer, put her mouth to his ear, and said,

* * *

"Excuse me, sir."

The dream shattered and the girl's face was replaced with the facade of a frustrated store owner.

"Sir, would you please get up?"

Ash blinked a few times and sat up. His half-closed eyes scanned the room with little-to-no precision. The furniture store. That's where he was. He felt something squeeze the side of his coat. Dawn had crawled into his bed, and had curled up to his side.

"While I do invite you to try our merchandise, do you and your girlfriend know how late it is?" Ash pulled out his phone.

12:36 AM

"Ohhhhh shit." He reached over and shook Dawn.

"Dawn, come on, we gotta go."

"Zzz, Zzz, Zzz" Dawn was fast asleep!

"Dawn."

"Dawnnnn."

"Dawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwn."

"DawnDawnDawnDawnDawn, ahhh dammit." Ash lifted her onto his back into the piggyback position, profusely apologized to the store owner, and ran out of the mall. He pulled out his phone and rang Gary.

"Gary!"

"Hey, shh, Misty's sleeping!"

"OUR ROOM AGAIN?"

"Umm, no..."

"Gary. I called the room phone."

"Oh. Well then."

"Well fuc-Oh, screw that, Gary, Dawn and I are still in town! You left us!"

"ME? You didn't pick up for hours! I assumed you just caught your own way back like usual!"

"I took her to that furniture store and we both fell asleep."

"Oh. So."

"So what?"

"Did you get it on?"

"Gary."

"I'm serious."

"Gary."

"Joking, wait, don't the night-watch cameras and guards come out after 11:30?"

"Yeah, I know, I'm going to use the west entrance, I'll need your help when I get there. Bring Squirtle."

"Got it, let me know when." Ash hung up.

"Well, how to get home?" He thought. If only he brought Charizard, he'd be back in five minutes.

"Zzz...mehhhhhhhh, wuzz goin' on?" Dawn lifted her head.

"Dawn, you're awake!" Ash set her down on a bench.

"Yeah, where are we?"

"Downtown, it's past midnight." Dawn's eyes got wide.

"They just gave me that lecture on returning to school on time." Ash chuckled.

"We'll be fine, I have an idea. Trust me?" She looked at him strangely, then gave him a tired, graceful smile.

"All right, I trust you."

"Well, first things first, we have to get back to school." They looked around for a solution. A man was locking up a bicycle outside his house.

* * *

"Excuse me!" Dawn shouted. The man looked up.

"Well, good evening, what are you kids doing out so late?"

"We overslept and need to get back to Academy," explained Ash. The man looked closer and realized something.

"You're Ash Ketchum! Last year's undefeated champion! My daughter talks about you all the time!"

"Umm, yeah, thanks."

"So what do you need from an old stranger?"

"Actually, we were wondering if we could borrow your bike." The man thought for a second.

"You look like a good kid. I guess I have your name and school name, so it wouldn't be hard to find you if you stole it." He handed it to Ash.

"Now hurry and get that girl back, I imagine Old Samuel wouldn't be too happy if he found out."

"Thanks, we'll bring it back this weekend!" Then something caught Ash's attention.

"Wait, you know Samuel Oak?" But the man had already entered the apartment.

"What a nice guy, I would've never given out my bike like that," Dawn remarked.

"Yeah, he seemed familiar. I swear I'd seen him before."

"Haha, it's dark out, you could barely see his face."

"But-oh, we should get going. Climb on."

"No thanks, you sit on the back, I'll bike."

"But Dawn, you're still tired and I think that I-"

"You carried me all the way out of the store to here. Also," she adjusted the gears and the chains, "I'm kind of a good biker." She pushed off at a surprising speed, forcing Ash to grab onto her waist.

"I feel absolutely ridiculous," Ash grumbled.

"Emasculation at its best," Dawn giggled.

"Har har."

* * *

(Thirty minutes later)

"All right, take this next right, the school will be right there."

"Okay, oh crap!" Dawn swerved the bike into some bushes, the pair fell off and hit the ground, hard. Ash spun around.

"What the hell was that fo-"

"Shh!" Dawn clasped her hand over his mouth and pointed around the corner, where a flashlight beam threatened to expose them. It remained shining at the entrance, then moved away. They both exhaled.

"Phew! Too close."

"Yeah, so is Gary on his way?"

"Yep, we just need to get into position on the west entrance gates, the guards almost never cross it."

"Let's move fast." They ran around the gates and headed to the spot.

"So why don't the guards hang around the west entrance?"

"Umm," Ash paused and pointed, "Well, there's that."

"Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr." A massive slumbering Salamence blocked the entire west side. Dawn went into panic mode, yelling silently to Ash,

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?"

"Salamence." He responded noiselessly.

"TOO BIG!" Dawn mouthed in fear.

Ash's phone buzzed with a message from Gary, "Ready."

Ash looked at Dawn.

"Now or never" he mouthed. Dawn looked at the Salamence, then nodded in resignation.

Ash texted back.

"Go."

* * *

Gary was just inside the west entrance, where three security cameras were monitoring the gates. He released Squirtle and took a victory pose.

"Squirtle, use Haze!" Squirtle looked at him like he was an idiot.

"Squirtle, Squirt Squirt." (I don't take orders from morons)

"I can't understand you, but Ash is outside and he needs our help!"

"Squirtle Squirt. Squirrrrrrtle, Squirt." (Oh, Ash. I guesssssssss I'll help. You owe me food)

Squirtle opened his mouth and released a thick cloud of condensation, clouding over the lenses of the cameras.

Gary texted Ash, "Move!"

* * *

Ash grabbed Dawn's hand and moved towards the Salamence, who sniffed the air suspiciously. Suddenly, it opened its eyes and bounded towards Ash.

"ASH!" Dawn wouldn't make it in time. She closed her eyes.

* * *

"Aww come on Salamence, you have to be quiet!" Dawn opened her eyes to see the massive Salamence embracing/suffocating the young trainer.

"But, but, how?"

"Dawn, meet Samuel Oak's Salamence. I met him as a Bagon at Oak's lab back home, and we played together a lot." Salamence eyed Dawn, then lowered his head. Dawn petted him.

"Aww, you're a real cutie aren't you?" She scratched a spot behind his ear. Salamence grumbled in appreciation.

"Sorry boy, we'll play soon, I gotta get inside though." The Pokemon whined but lifted its left side, allowing Dawn and Ash to walk through.

"Bye Salamence, nice to meet you!"

"Grrrrr."

* * *

Ash and Dawn towards the school, where Gary was holding open the gate.

"YOU MADE IT!" Gary shouted. Ash and Dawn gave him daggers with their eyes.

"You made it," he repeated in a hushed tone and hugged them both. "But we should get going."

The trio sprinted down towards the dormitory buildings while checking around corners for patrolling guards. Gary said a quick goodbye to Dawn and ran into the boys' dorms. Ash turned to Dawn.

"Well it's been a hell of an adventurous day."

"Agreed, I don't think I've ever done anything this crazy before."

"And thanks for the Tour de France, Ms. Muscles," Ash laughed.

"Don't call me that," said Dawn in mock anger.

"Being serious, I had a good time."

"Same."

"Well good night, Dawn."

"Good night, Ash."

* * *

With a heartfelt smile, Dawn disappeared into the girls' wing. Ash sighed and walked into the hallway. Opening his room, he found a mess.

"Gary, what the hell happened?"

Clothes, soap, deodorant, pokeballs, potions, Gary's "magazine" collection, everything had been thrown all over the room. Standing in the middle was Gary being threatened by a very angry Squirtle.

"Squirtle, what's up?" Ash asked.

"Squirtle, Squirt Squirt."

"Gary, he says you owe him something."

"I do not!"

"Squirt!"

"Hmm, should I tell you what he wants, or just let him have his way with you?"

"Nooo, help me Ash!"

"Huhh...?" A half-naked Misty arose from the disaster on the floor.

"Oh hey Misty."

"Hey, Ash."

"Ash, call off Squirtle!"

"Wait, Gary. What are these magazines?" Misty exclaimed.

"Misty, I can explain!"

"Sqiurt Squirt!"

"Hahaha go ahead Squirtle!" Ash laughed.

"Ash, you bastard!"

"SQUIRTLE!"

* * *

The sounds of laughter, confusion, and the dismembering of limbs echoed from the room. The participants wouldn't fall asleep for three more hours. Meanwhile, a father was calling his daughter.

"...And you know, Ash Ketchum showed up at my place tonight!"

"Wait, really?"

"Yeah, he and some girl borrowed my bike, past midnight."

"Did he now?"

"Haha go roast him," Norman laughed.

"Oh I will!" May Maple put down the phone.


	4. Chapter 4

The sound of conversing students, the smell of overpriced food, and the casual throwing of consumables is the sight you see as you walk into Kanto Academy's cafeteria. A slouched Ash and a sleep-deprived Gary had found their usual seat in the corner by the window.

"It's been awhile since you've been to breakfast," Gary grunted while gnawing on green grapes.

"Yeah, I would've over slept like usual but somebody's bawling woke me up," retorted Ash, who was devouring a tomato-chicken-lettuce-bacon sandwich.

"Well," Gary orated through oarfuls of oatmeal, "I managed to retape an entire magazine. Hopefully Misty ever finds them again."

"Yeah, yeah, it was your fault for having them out. Speak of the devil."

"Hail Satan!" Gary saluted. Ash gave him a deadpanned look.

"No, like it's Misty." Gary's head swiveled 180 degrees.

"And Dawn! Hey guys!" Gary waved them over.

A few nearby heads turned.

"Who's that girl..."

"Why's she sitting with Ash?"

"He had other friends?"

"Oh she's new, she doesn't know any better."

"Morning, guys!" greeted Misty.

"Oh, toast for breakfast, Dawn?" questioned Gary.

Silently, Dawn pulled out a pack of mayonnaise and spread it quite liberally across the piece of bread. Ash facepalmed.

"You got something to say?" Dawn challenged.

"Oh, no, I would never..." he started, "...steal your sandwich!" He picked up the plastered bread and tossed it to Gary.

"Yuck, I don't want this." He held it vertically. "Look, she put so much that it drips off."

"Gary, not while I'm eating!" complained Misty. Dawn took advantage of the moment to snatch back her delicacy.

"You all just don't understand how simple the combination of bread and mayonnaise can be so-*Burp* ." A split-second pause was soon followed by-

"BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Dawn's eyes widened and her face went red as the rest of the table collapsed into fits and giggles.

"Must be all that mayonnaise in your stomach!" laughed Ash.

"Don't you mean mayo- *burrrp*?" asked Gary. Dawn's laughter soon joined theirs in a raucous chorus of humor.

"Pheww. I just didn't think you'd be that kind of girl, Dawn," said Gary.

"I'm not! That was an accident!" Dawn pouted. Misty offered a supportive hug.

"It's all right, Dawn, Gary belched while we were having-" Dawn plugged her ears and shut her eyes tight.

"Dontwannahear, Dontwannahear, Dontwannahear!" Gary glared at Misty, Misty took a sudden interest in the clock.

"It's about time for me to go! I go swimming first hour."

"Aww, I wish I could go swimming too," wished Dawn.

"Me too!" exclaimed Gary. Misty shook her head and got up and gestured to Gary. He stood up.

"I'm walking Misty," he shook Ash's shoulder, "Ash, time to go!"

"Mrrrph?" Ash lifted his head from the comfortable mahogany table.

"Hey, Lazy, wanna walk with me?" Dawn asked. Ash shrugged in indifference and got to his feet.

* * *

-In the Hallway-

"You know? Lots of kids in my other classes were talking about you."

"Really?"

"Yeah, something about being super strong?"

"Oh, that kind of talk."

"Mmhm, is it true?"

"Yeah."

"How humble...I mean they also said you were a cocky asshole." Ash smiled.

"That's more what I was expecting. What did you say back?"

"That you weren't cocky," she said slyly.

"So I'm still an asshole."

"Yep."

"Dawn!" Two girls came running up and sandwiched the sandwich girl.

"Uumph! Hey guys." They exchanged greetings then looked over in surprise at Ash.

"Oh yeah, sorry. Ash, this is Zoey and Solidad."

Zoey was a redhead sophomore whose short spiky hair gave off a tall and defiant aura. Solidad, a junior, was a common discussion topic among the guys at Kanto. She was kind and elegant, with long salmon hair that reached the middle of her back.

"Doing well Ash?"

"Yeah just fine. You too Sol?" Solidad just smiled. Zoey thrust her hand in front of the group as if using Karate Chop.

"Quick girl's conference!" she shouted, and dragged Dawn and Zoey to the other side of the hall.

"Dawn! You're talking with Ash!" Zoey said alarmingly.

"Yeah, and?"

"He's talking back!" Dawn laughed.

"Yeah that's how people have a conversation right?"

"He's a lot more docile than everyone thinks. Just sarcastic and lazy." Solidad interjected.

"How would you know?" asked Zoey.

"We were on Kanto's Intermural Tournament team last year. We talked a few times but he never seemed interested in me."

"Oh okay." Zoey turned on Dawn with a devilish grin.

"So you like?" Dawn paused to think.

"Dunno but," she looked over at Ash, "He's interesting." The other two girls turned to look at dark-haired teen who was nodding off against a locker.

"Ash, wake up?" Dawn slapped him in the back. Ash bolted upright and hit his nose into the locker. Dawn cracked up. Zoey and Solidad looked at each other with raised eyebrows.

"We'll see you later Dawn, bye Ash!" waved Solidad.

"Bye, guys! Lunch soon!" Dawn yelled.

"Seeya," mumbled Ash, holding his nose.

Together, Ash and Dawn climbed up the grand staircases that connected the floors of the massive complex. Masses of students rushed as if schools of fish avoiding a shark.

They stopped outside Dawn's classroom.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around."

"Yeah seeya Dawn." Dawn waved and headed in.

Ash watched her walk into the room and sighed to himself.

Now he had to walk ALL the way back to his class with Gary. Girls.

Then a hand grabbed him in the hallway.

* * *

Dawn looked around the room, scanning for any familiar faces. Finding none, she chose the farthest seat in the back. Just as she was making herself comfortable, a deep voice vibrated.

"That's my seat." Dawn looked up and saw a repressed mess of depressed purple hair.

Seriously? Purple? It reminded her of an upperclassman she'd seen in the hallway with some pretty stupid-looking celery-green hair. Crazy school.

"It's free seating in here right?" The girls around Dawn cringed in fear.

"Yeah but that's my seat."

"Mine today." Dawn said nonchalantly. The boy paused. He'd never been challenged like this in this chool.

"Umm…" The other students held their breath. "Okay." Instant facepalm from the class.

"I mean, do you have a name?" Dawn asked.

"Paul."

"Well hey Paul, I'm Dawn. Nice to meetcha."

"...Same. I guess."

* * *

Ash spun around, and found out the hand belonged to,

"Oh hey, May." The gorgeous brunette smiled back at him.

"Let's go for a walk?" Ash shrugged.

"Don't want to go to first hour anyway. I'm done with berries." The duo stpped out into the dense woods that surrounded the back of the campus.

"So how's everything?" Ash asked.

"Dunno. I'm a little jealous."

"About?"

"I heard my beneficial best friend was out late last night in town. With another girl."

"Oh. My bad."

"Tuesday nights are mine, remember?" May asked aggressively. Ash mentally slapped himself.

"Sorry, how do I make it up to you?" May linked her hands around his neck.

"Well...how about right now?"

"Umm...Gary needs my homework…" May almost laughed at his dumb excuse as Ash leaned in and kissed her.


	5. Chapter 5

The second hour of school was just about to wrap up. While most of the students were busy cramming math formulas into their heads or discussing the recent enigmatic appearances of a wild Deoxys in the area, two students were wrapping up some "extracurricular activities".

* * *

"Well, it's definitely been a while." said Ash, pulling on his cap.

"Yeah, since last weekend," giggled May, readjusting her blouse. "By the way, we should double-date sometime."

"With who?"

"That cute blue-haired girl."

"Oh, Dawn? Yeah she's interesting." He recalled her burp just two hours ago and chuckled to himself.

"I agree."

"What about us?" Ash asked.

"Same as always: Until we're caught, or fall in love."

"Sounds fine to me." He heard the bell chime and sighed. "There goes another period absent."

"Worth it?" May asked jokingly.

"What do you think?" They headed back inside.

* * *

"See you later, Paul!"

"Mmhm…" Ash saw Dawn wave to a lumbering eggplant and raised his eyes in suspicion. She spotted Ash walking in and ran over.

"Hey, Ash." She looked at May. "Who's the pretty girl?"

"I like her!" exclaimed May.

"This is May Maple, May meet Dawn Berlitz."

"Nice to meet you!"

"Likewise!" Dawn looked at May.

"May, you have some grass in your hair."

"Oh, thanks." She shot a quick look to Ash who had closed his eyes.

"Where are you guys off to now?" Dawn asked.

"Well, I have math...which I don't want to go to after I threw up in front of everyone yesterday."

"I have Poffin-making."

"Me too, May! Let's go together!"

"All right, bye Ash!" Dawn waved.

"Seeya, Ash!" May turned around and winked. Ash rolled his eyes and walked to class.

* * *

(In Poffin-making)

"So Dawn, who was that guy?"

"The big guy with the purple hair? Paul, just met him last hour."

"You like him?"

"He's a quiet giant, a potentially great friend. But not really my type."

"Hmm...so what is your type?"

"Intelligent, caring, good-looking. But really, anyone who can make me laugh."

"Haha, my standards are basically the same as yours."

"Oh yeah! I heard you had a boyfriend!" said Dawn as they walked into class.

"Yeah, Drew LaRousse. He's a goof but he's doing a decent job."

"You two in the back, we've started class. Today we'll talk about the difference between Tomato, Spelon, and the Razz berries as well as discuss the circumstantial results that come from different techniques of…"

* * *

"Dawn, psst."

"Dawn."

"Dawn!" A forced whisper and a swift kick pulled Dawn out of Morpheus's clutches. She looked up at an expecting Mrs. Cedar.

"Uhh...yes?"

"Ms. Berlitz, I was asking for the best berry to make a beauty poffin with." Dawn felt a surge of relief.

"That would be the Pamtre berry, and of course, you could attain the highest level by cooking with three other people."

"That's exactly correct! Two extra credit points for you." Ms. Cedar beamed. May turned to Dawn.

"Look at you! Schooling the teacher."

"Nahh, I used to help my dad-" She paused. "Yeah." May noticed the pause.

"Oh, well maybe you could help me cook sometime." Dawn's smile returned.

"Okay." Then Dawn remembered something and turned back to May.

"So how do you know Ash?" May thought to herself.

"I'm his biggest fan!" Dawn laughed out loud at that.

* * *

When the bell rang for lunch, Ash snapped to attention and bolted for the door. The hunger had taken him over. Before he could enter the cafeteria, he heard,

"Ash," Gary shouted from across the hall, "Dorm lunch on the first floor!"

Dorm lunches are scheduled by the dorm leader freely, usually providing pizza, soda, and other stereotypical teenage foodstuffs. It's meant to provide an atmosphere for student bonding with the incentive of consumables.

"Today?"

"Yeah, Drew chose it to get out of a lunch detention. You coming?" Ash didn't really have any plans.

"Sure, I'll be there. Let me go to my locker first."

"Gotcha, we're ordering from Pizza Shack!" Ash strolled off to his locker. He was in the middle of twisting the dial when the backs of his knees were hit and his legs caved in. Ash turned around and saw no one. Ash was used to this by now.

_'Better not tell Gary,'_ he thought, '_He worries too much.'_ He went back to unlocking his locker when again someone slapped the backs of his knees. Half-expecting it this time, he didn't fall all the way to the ground and spun around to grab the perpetrator.

"Hahaha, almost got you!" May giggled. Ash instantly released his grip.

"Sorry, I thought you were someone else." May was about to ask about the suspicious look on his face but then someone jumped on her back, reaching around May's head to grab Ash's cheeks.

"Stop looking so depressed all the time." Dawn demanded.

"Oh hey, Dawn." He looked at the two of them. "You two got along fast."

"Yep, Dawn's the little sister I never had. I wish I could trade Max for her."

"Who's Max?" asked Dawn.

"Little brother."

"Oh. Anyways, Ash, wanna have lunch with me and May?"

"Uhh yeah-" Then he remembered. "Oh actually, Drew's throwing a dorm lunch today."

"That bastard," said May, "Ruining my lunch plans." Ash chuckled.

"Yeah, next time though." Dawn booed but released Ash's face.

"All right, May, let's get some girls together and have lunch without this asshole."

"Gotcha, bye Ash!"

"Mmhm." May carried Dawn off into the turbulent mosh pit that was the student body. Ash turned back towards his locker. He looked left, right, and behind him and waited for something to happen. But nothing did so, on his third attempt, he finally unlocked his locker and unloaded his books and folders from his morning classes then walked out the school exit toward the dorms.

* * *

Ash walked outside, expecting the perfect weather he had experienced just a few hours ago. But the Sun had had enough with Ash and Kanto Academy so it chose to hide behind aggressive stormy skies. Then Ash heard a whisper.

"Roserade, Sunny Day." A ball of golden light flew up to the clouds. As if swept away by Arceus, the skies around Kanto lightened until the sky turned a brilliant blue and every cloud was vanquished. Ash turned to the owner of the Roserade.

"You know, you'll get in trouble if they catch you toying with the weather." Drew smiled.

"Nahh, I haven't got caught since sophomore year. Their Pokemon roster doesn't list Sunny Day as one of Roserade's moves. And," he looked up at the radiant sky, " I think sunny lunches are better." Ash thought for a bit.

"Actually, my favorite meal was in the rain." Drew looked to him.

"I suppose. But for now, let's go, the food's waiting. Plus," he opened his backpack to reveal a disorganized pile of cold sparkling cider, "I raided the teacher's lounge before lunch started!" Ash yawned, unimpressed.

"You know I hate sparkling cider." Ash paused. "And mayonnaise."

"Sure do, but that's all they had. And who knows, people change their tastes in a flash." Ash shrugged and the two walked off to the male dorms, discussing battles, school, and sandwiches.


End file.
